Auditioning singers policy?

[guitarfishbay]

My recent band have decided none of us are good enough to do lead vocals. I'm terrible, the drummer and other guitarist are not interested, and the bassist is ok but has limited range and an uninspiring tone.

So we've been advertising on Gumtree and Join My Band for almost a month now.

Our current policy is 'no clips, no audition' (obviously worded more tactfully than that!).

We've had around 35+ replies now but only 10 or so have given clips, of which we've auditioned two and have a further audition to come next week. Auditions are about 90 minutes, and include covers, writing time (they're asked to come with an idea for either/both of the two tracks we provide) and hanging out/Q&A which is equally important to the musical side.

There seem to be a disproportionately high number of people who insist on meeting up instead of sending clips, or who just completely ignore the request for clips and insist we meet up and jam.

While this might seem ideal on paper, the issue is time. I just don't see how we'd have the time to meet everyone and 'have a jam', so the clip thing is our commitment/talent filter. We're wagering that nearly everyone can record something, even if it is a mobile phone recording or laptop recording, and we've stressed that in our replies and have had a mobile phone recorded audition from someone already. If a singer can't be bothered to do this then we're just going to have to assume they can't be bothered to do other things either.

Are we missing a trick by not just gambling on these no clip singers? Do you guys just let people turn up if they show interest?

This is intended to be a serious originals rock band. We've all got gear, transport, experience (both recording and gigging) and are 25-30 so still just about young enough to get something done in the originals market.

I guess I'm just frustrated, and hoping things get going soon.

[monquixote]

Don't underestimate how non technical some people are.

Don't bother meeting people beforehand or you end up as I have several times spending an evening with someone who is a great bloke, likes the same music as you and says all the right things that make you think they can play, but then they can't play a fekking note.

If you have other stuff you could be doing in the studio I would suggest telling people you only have 20-30 mins for them to audition and then you can ask them if they want to stay longer or come to a second audition if they are good because actually 5 minutes is enough to tell if someone is shit.

[RocknRollDave]

I don't move in the originals circuit at all (i'm in function band purgatory for past sins) but my two cents are..:

It's YOUR band, hence YOU decide what the audition consists of. If they think you are being too ordely or anal about it, then it's their choice to walk away and say "no thanks".
If you've set out your stall as clearly as you have and people are trying to move the goalposts...then I'd be hearing alarm bells about what sort of contribution they will make to the band. Will they always be pulling in a different direction to you? Will they be resistant to taking direction? etc etc.
You might miss out on a great singer by adhering to your rules...but that same great singer might not be a great singer for your band if they don't fit in in other ways
Ok there needs to be some element of using your discretion, but you will kind of know the difference between someone being a total dick and someone who just needs a nudge in the right direction

Finding suitable band members is always a ball-ache, and to use my well-worn expression, you have to kiss a lot of frogs..

And finding a decent singer - and one who's not an arse - is even harder....but if you are serious about the band then it is worth your persistence and worth your high standards.

Stick to your guns, in other words!

[stickyfiddle]

Don't underestimate how non technical some people are.

Don't bother meeting people beforehand or you end up as I have several times spending an evening with someone who is a great bloke, likes the same music as you and says all the right things that make you think they can play, but then they can't play a fekking note.

If you have other stuff you could be doing in the studio I would suggest telling people you only have 20-30 mins for them to audition and then you can ask them if they want to stay longer or come to a second audition if they are good because actually 5 minutes is enough to tell if someone is shit.

All of this. Give everyone who wants it a 20 minute slot (allowing half an hour so you can run over). Anyone who wants to meet before going to a studio (so much that they won't just come to studio if you insist) is a knobber.

In my experience bands either click or don't click. If you don't know which after 10 minutes it's answer #2!

Equally, anyone who is determined not to get you even a 10 second a demo these days is very possibly gonna be a pain to work with or a useless nervy frontman.

[monquixote]

Equally, anyone who is determined not to get you even a 10 second a demo these days is very possibly gonna be a pain to work with or a useless nervy frontman.

Musicians are funny bunch though. I know a few awesome musicians who don't own a mobile phone or a computer.

[stickyfiddle]

Musicians are funny bunch though. I know a few awesome musicians who don't own a mobile phone or a computer.

Totally, but they'll be a pain to work with if you ever want the option of playing a last-minute gig!

[fretmeister]

You are looking for someone who can sing. Not for someone who is going to impress you with recording and autotune skills.

Don't get hung up on shite that doesn't matter. Especially don't use a lack of a clip as a crappy excuse to not audition someone. You might turn down a very tasty singer, just because they have an old PC and a Nokia 3310.

20 mins is more than enough to decide you don't want someone. TBH 10 mins is enough.

And asking them to effectively write a song for you and then telling him to sod off is just bad form.

[pintspiller]

i agree. give ones a punt who have no demotapes. a demo is no sign of talent - too many people out there who are just-okay or plain-shit with a few pound to spend in some kid's bedroom studio or something more professional have crap-to-mediocre demos

[Viz]

Ring them and ask them to sing something 2 minutes down the phone

[guitarfishbay]

You are looking for someone who can sing. Not for someone who is going to impress you with recording and autotune skills.

Don't get hung up on shite that doesn't matter. Especially don't use a lack of a clip as a crappy excuse to not audition someone. You might turn down a very tasty singer, just because they have an old PC and a Nokia 3310.

20 mins is more than enough to decide you don't want someone. TBH 10 mins is enough.

And asking them to effectively write a song for you and then telling him to sod off is just bad form.

Well some perspective here might help.

We all auditioned for each other in a similar style. We're all high standard players on at least one instrument and only want to work with someone equally serious. I shouldn't have to apologise for that requirement.

We've only auditioned strong candidates and have basically asked them to jam a melody line or hook for original material, the rest has been covers and time spent hanging out - very important as we're keen to tour when ready and need someone similar to us otherwise that won't work.

We think giving good singers short auditions leads to time wasting on both our side and their side. If we know they're good enough the next step is working out the personal and work side, which takes time as nobody loosens up right away. It has been revealing, and it did take nearly the whole session both times to make a firm decision.

So I disagree we're using bad form. An original band is like a start up business - you don't go into business with just anyone, they need to have the skills and fit the organisation. The front man is the most important part of the band, so we don't want just anyone. We're treating the singers seriously, like it is a job interview to an extent, and we've had great feedback and both singers enjoyed the format

So we intend to continue giving known strong candidates a long sesion. The thread was to discuss giving wild cards a shot anyway. Thanks for the discussion so far. I'm leaning towards recommending we try the short slot and reaudition format next week and see what happens.